Samuel Huntington (July 16, 1731 – January 5, 1796) was a

Founding Father of the United States The Founding Fathers of the United States, often simply referred to as the Founding Fathers or the Founders, were a group of late-18th-century American Revolution, American revolutionary leaders who United Colonies, united the Thirteen Colon ...

and a lawyer, jurist, statesman, and Patriot in the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

from

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. As a delegate to the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislature, legislative bodies, with some executive function, for the Thirteen Colonies of British America, Great Britain in North America, and the newly declared United States before, during, and after ...

, he signed the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another state or failed state, or are breaka ...

and the

Articles of Confederation The Articles of Confederation, officially the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, was an agreement and early body of law in the Thirteen Colonies, which served as the nation's first Constitution, frame of government during the Ameri ...

. He also served as President of the Continental Congress from 1779 to 1781, President of the United States in Congress Assembled in 1781, chief justice of the

Connecticut Supreme Court The Connecticut Supreme Court, formerly known as the Connecticut Supreme Court of Errors, is the supreme court, highest court in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It consists of a Chief Justice and six Associate Justices. The seven justices sit i ...

from 1784 to 1785, and the 18th Governor of Connecticut from 1786 until his death. He was the first United States governor to have died while in office.

Early life and education

Huntington was born to Nathaniel and Mehetabel Huntington on July 16, 1731, in Windham,

Connecticut Colony The Connecticut Colony, originally known as the Connecticut River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became the state of Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636, as a settlement for a Puritans, Puritan congregation o ...

in present-day Scotland, Connecticut, which broke off from Windham in 1857. His house is currently accessible off Route 14. He was the fourth of ten children and the oldest son. He had a limited education in the

common school A common school was a public school in the United States during the 19th century. Horace Mann (1796–1859) was a strong advocate for public education and the common school. In 1837, the state of Massachusetts appointed Mann as the first secretar ...

s, then was self-educated. When he was 16, he was apprenticed to a cooper but also continued to help his father on the family farm. His education largely was a product of books he read from the library of Rev. Ebenezer Devotion and books borrowed from local lawyers. In 1754, Huntington was admitted to the bar, and moved to

Norwich, Connecticut Norwich ( ) is a city in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The Yantic River, Yantic, Shetucket River, Shetucket, and Quinebaug Rivers flow into the city and form its harbor, from which the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River f ...

, to begin practicing law.

Career

Connecticut Assembly

After brief service as a selectman, Huntington began his political career in earnest in 1764 when Norwich sent him as one of their representatives to the lower house of the Connecticut Assembly, where he served until 1774. In 1775, he was elected to the upper house, the Governor's Council, where he served until 1784.Gilbert M. Cuthbertson. "Huntington, Samuel", '' American National Biography Online'', February 2000. In addition to serving in the legislature, he was appointed king's attorney for Connecticut in 1768 and in 1773 was appointed to the colony's supreme court, then known as the Supreme Court of Errors. He was chief justice of the Supreme Court from 1784 until 1787.

American Revolution

Huntington was an outspoken critic of the Coercive Acts of the British Parliament. In October 1775, the assembly elected him to be one of their delegates to the

Second Continental Congress The Second Continental Congress (1775–1781) was the meetings of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that united in support of the American Revolution and American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War, which established American independence ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. In January 1776, he joined Roger Sherman and Oliver Wolcott, which collectively represented the

's delegation in the Second Continental Congress. He voted for and signed the

and the

. He served in the Congress in the years 1776, 1778–1781, and 1783. He suffered from an attack of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

while in Congress.

President of the Continental Congress

While not known for extensive learning or brilliant speech, Huntington's steady hard work and unfailing calm manner earned him the respect of his fellow delegates. As a result, when

John Jay John Jay (, 1745 – May 17, 1829) was an American statesman, diplomat, signatory of the Treaty of Paris (1783), Treaty of Paris, and a Founding Father of the United States. He served from 1789 to 1795 as the first chief justice of the United ...

left to become minister to the

Kingdom of Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, Huntington was elected to succeed him as President of the Continental Congress on September 28, 1779, which is one reason why he is sometimes considered the first president. The President of Congress was a mostly ceremonial position with no real authority, but the office did require Huntington to handle a good deal of correspondence and sign official documents. He spent his time as president urging the states and their legislatures to support the levies for men, supplies, and money needed to fight the Revolutionary War. The Articles of Confederation were ratified during his term. Huntington remained as President of Congress until July 9, 1781, when ill health forced him to resign and return to Connecticut. In 1782, Connecticut again named him as a delegate, but his health and judicial duties kept him from accepting. He returned to the Congress as a delegate for the 1783 session to see the success of the revolution embodied in the Treaty of Paris. In that same year, he was elected a member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

Governor of Connecticut

In 1785, Huntington built his mansion house just off the green in Norwichtown, Connecticut at what is now 34 East Town Street and the current headquarters of United and Community Family Services, Inc. In 1785, he was elected as lieutenant governor of Connecticut, serving with Governor Matthew Griswold. In 1786, he became governor. He remained in charge of the Supreme Court during his tenure as lieutenant governor but vacated that position upon election to governor. In his first year as governor, in a reprise of his efforts in Congress, he brokered the Treaty of Hartford that resolved western land claims between New York and

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. In 1787, he lent his support to the

Northwest Ordinance The Northwest Ordinance (formally An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North-West of the River Ohio and also known as the Ordinance of 1787), enacted July 13, 1787, was an organic act of the Congress of the Co ...

that completed the national resolution of these issues. In 1788, he presided over the Connecticut Convention that was called to ratify the

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. Originally includi ...

. In later years he saw the transition of Connecticut into a U.S. state. He resolved the issue of a permanent state capital at

Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

and oversaw the construction of the state house. He received two electoral votes in the first U.S. presidential election. He was again a member of the Connecticut Supreme Court of Errors from 1794 until his death.

Personal life

Huntington married Martha Devotion (Rev. Devotion's daughter) in 1761. They remained together until her death in 1794. The couple did not birth any children, but when his brother (Rev. Joseph Huntington) died they adopted their nephew and niece. They raised Samuel Huntington "Jr." and Frances as their own. Samuel Huntington never owned slaves.

Death

Huntington died while in office at his home in Norwich on January 5, 1796. His tomb, which was extensively restored in 2003, is located in the Old Norwichtown Cemetery behind his mansion house. Both Samuel and his wife Martha's remains were disinterred during the course of the project and then reinterred in a formal ceremony on November 23, 2003.

Legacy

Huntington, Connecticut, was named in his honor in 1789 but was later renamed to Shelton when the town incorporated with Shelton to form a city in 1919. He is the namesake of

Huntington County, Indiana Huntington County is a County (United States), county in the northeastern central part of the U.S. state of Indiana. According to the 2020 United States census, the population was 36,662. The county seat (and only city) is Huntington, Indiana, ...

. Huntington Mills is a small town in northeastern Pennsylvania which also derives its name in honor of Samuel Huntington. The home that Samuel was born in was built by his father, Nathaniel, around 1732 and still stands. The area is now within the borders of the town of Scotland, Connecticut. In 1994, the home and some grounds were purchased by a local historic trust. The Samuel Huntington Birthplace is a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

. His nephew and adopted son Samuel H. Huntington moved to the Ohio Country region that he had been instrumental in opening up, and later became the third governor of

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. Because Huntington was the president of the

when the

were ratified, some unconventional biographers and civic groups consider Huntington the first

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

References

External links

*
The Huntington Homestead
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Huntington, Samuel 1731 births 1796 deaths American Congregationalists American people of English descent Candidates in the 1788–1789 United States presidential election Chief justices of the Connecticut Supreme Court Connecticut Federalists Continental Congressmen from Connecticut Federalist Party state governors of the United States Founding Fathers of the United States Governors of Connecticut Members of the Connecticut General Assembly Council of Assistants (1662–1818) Patriots in the American Revolution People from Scotland, Connecticut People from colonial Connecticut Politicians from Norwich, Connecticut Signers of the Articles of Confederation Signers of the United States Declaration of Independence Members of the American Philosophical Society